And when I said I have no side projects to show, what they heard - what interviewers hear - is: I am not the best. I am not a passionate developer.

And when I said I have no side projects to show, what they heard - what interviewers hear - is: I am not the best. I am not a passionate developer. I don't spend the necessary time to keep on top of my education and skills. That development is "just a job." This isn't how I interpret it at all. Gauging how you write code, structure commits, and talk about your work cannot be done solely through face to face interviews. When I talk with someone who cannot show me any code, I feel like I'm lacking a signal for determining how well they'll be able to produce. It's not a deal-breaker by any means, just a complication.